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Saturday, November 26, 2016

In the country of the 'revolution,' homosexuals remain without rights

In the country of the 'revolution,' homosexuals remain without rights
DDC | Madrid | 25 de Noviembre de 2016 - 23:17 CET.

In Latin America, gay marriage is legal in Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil
and Colombia. It is also permitted in Mexico City and several Mexican
states. Chile has a Civil Union Agreement that legally governs the
unions of homosexual and heterosexual couples who are not married, and
Ecuador gave marital status to de facto unions between two people,
regardless of their gender.

In Cuba, nothing similar has been achieved.

In the country that has boasted of having carried out a "revolution,"
where the State dominates every stage and every level of citizens'
education, and exploits its total control of the media as an instrument
for it campaigns, and even though the daughter of dictator Raúl Castro
champions the cause of gay marriage, it has all come to naught: in Cuba
homosexuals are still unable to legally marry.

The editor-in-chief of the magazine Espacio Laical and the president of
the World Catholic Association for Communication (SIGNIS) says that gay
marriage has not been approved on the Island due to "widespread
rejection" of it. Does he base his claim on surveys, or simply on
Catholic prejudices on the issue?

The National Center for Sex Education (CENESEX), the institution through
which Mariela Castro is supposed to represent the rights of the Cuban
LGBT community, should respond to this statement with the results of its
research.

Regardless of the majority opinion amongst the Cuban population, raising
awareness and educating the public about gay marriage is the CENESEX's
responsibility. In December the National Assembly of Popular Power is to
convene again, and Deputy Mariela Castro should stand up for those
rights there.

Because, in light of what has been achieved in other Latin American
countries, continuing to point to Cuban society's traditional machismo
is a weak excuse by the institution, which she heads up thanks to her
family ties.